Bloody hell.If he had to jump in with her, he would.
“Christopher!”
He glanced up for a second to find Rose sliding a broom across the ice.
“Give it a push then get off the bloody ice!”
“Tam? It’s too cold. I can’t…”
He snapped his head to Sophie. “You can. I’m coming. Move your arms and legs and everything.” Not wanting to take his eyes off her, but also needing to grab the broom that lay a few yards away, he skated cautiously toward it while talking to Sophie. “I’m going to get you out of there, but I need you to concentrate. Think about the shipwreck of Robinson Crusoe. He made it to the shore but then swam back to the wreck.”
“Yesss…t-t-to…g-g-get…w-wood.” Her teeth chattered as she tried to reply.
He lifted the broom and approached slowly, listening to the ice. “Wood is helpful not only for building structures but also to float on.”
“I…I know…th-th-that.”
“Of course you do.” He studied the opening in the ice and moved to the side with the least cracks. “Now I need you to turn toward me and rest your arms upon the ice.”
“I…I’ll…t-t-try.”
There was no help for it—he would have to move over the cracks. As quickly as he could, he lay down upon the ice over the cracks and held the broom toward Sophie, giving her the handle end, while he gripped the straw. The scent of good scotch filled his nostrils. Damn Rose! He focused on Sophie and held the broom out, but it didn’t reach.
Voices from the edge of the pond floated over him as he inched closer to her. “Try to grab the handle of the broom as I get closer.”
“It’sss…t-t-too…far.”
“Keep reaching and I’ll keep coming closer.”
“T-t-too…cold.” Her arms slipped from the ice.
His heart lurched. “Sophie, don’t give up. There are so many more books you need to read.”
She didn’t react, her lids lowering.
He moved the handle to just within her reach, but she needed to lift her cold limbs, and her movements to stay afloat were growing slower. “Come, Rosalind. You’ve never been one to give in. Show me that spirit.”
Her eyes opened fully and her gaze rested on the handle. One hand came out of the water and grasped it.
He held tight. “Now your other hand.”
Her chattering stopped for a moment as she gritted her teeth and lifted her other hand out of the frigid water. She got it to the handlebut couldn’t grasp it and started to sink.
“No!” He was about to jump in when her second arm shot out of the water, and she slammed her hand down on the broom handle, forcing it into her frozen palm.
Relief washed through him. “I’m going to pull you toward me. The ice will crack under your weight, but you hold on.”
She didn’t try to speak, but he could see in her eyes that she understood.
He started to pull the broom, but the cracking beneath him told him the ice wouldn’t hold both their weights. Still, if he could just pull her close enough to grasp her, then—
A hand grasped his ankle and started to pull him backward. He didn’t dare take his eyes off Sophie to see who’d understood his dilemma and had come to help, but he was thankful. As he was pulled back, the ice before Sophie cracked. Fearing she would be too cold to hold on, he pulled her closer until he could grasp one of her wrists. Even through his gloves, he could feel how cold she was and fear rippled through him.
He couldn’t have just found her only to lose her.
As they were pulled to stronger ice, he was able to grab her other wrist and pull her up onto the harder surface. They continued backward a few more yards before they stopped.
“That should do it, Lord Tamworth. We’d best get the lady into the house at once.”
